Monday Morning Federal Newscast

This morning's federal news as heard on WFED:

Get a good look at your mailman. He or she might retire this year. 18,000 U.S. Postal Service employees have accepted a $15,000 buyout offer, according to GovExec. The Postal Service is looking for a toal of 30,000. Remaining workers must decide by Nov. 30. The agency hopes for savings of $500 million if the buyouts reached the limit. To increase revenue, the Postal Service has launched a yearlong partnership with Hallmark to sell greeting cards in 1,500 locations starting January 1.

There's a new, secure federal office on Glebe Road in Arlington. Today is the first Monday of operations at the Homeland Security Department's National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center. It's a 24-hour, watch and warning facility aimed at improving the country's cybersecurity response. The new center combines what had been two separate operations.

Congress is trying to force the administration's hand on cybersecurity. Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut has promised to introduce legislation that would establish a White House cybersecurity coordinator who would be accountable to Congress. It would also give more people and authority to the Homeland Security Department to monitor and defend federal civilian networks. In the House, Representative Jim Langevin of Rhode Island said he'll introduce a bill to codify the powers of a White House cyber adviser. President Obama promised to name a cyber coordinator back in May.

The Congressional Budget Office, the nonpartisan number crunchers, has estimated that if Congress creates a public health care option, only six million Americans would sign up. That's about two percent of people under 65. CBO says that if priced to cover all of its costs, the public option would end up costing more than typical private plans. So most people would stick with what they've got.

Microsoft is trying to figure out why so many people are having trouble installing Windows 7, its new operating system. Complaints flooding an online Answers forum have a common thread: the endless reboot -- where the computer just restarts itself without finishing the upgrade. And Federal Computer Week reports that for some customers, the installation process halts about 60-percent of the way thru. Microsoft says it'll post answers on its Web site as soon as it finds out what's happening.

If you're hoping to see the National Christmas Tree lighting on the Ellipse, this is the week to get your ticket. For the first time, the National Park Service is holding an online lottery to distribute the nearly 10,000 tickets instead of making you stand in line on a Saturday morning. The lottery will be held this Wednesday through Friday at thenationaltree.org

More news links

Military lags in safeguarding officers' identities (Stars and Stripes)

No trick: 2,000 kids knock on White House door